ESL Teacher Reference Desk

Writing a Research Paper

Instructor: Dr. Algirdas Makarevicius
Students: Postgraduate Students, Year 1
Venue: Room 806
Duration: The course begins on Week 2 and finishes on Week 14; two academic hours per week.
Examination: 5 January 2011.

Course Requirements

Your research paper should consist of approximately 1500 words. The basis of good research paper is clear structure, coherent and consistent analysis of the problem, good examples/illustrations, without mistakes in spelling, grammar, style and syntax.

Research papers generally require you to include three main sections: introduction, body, and conclusion. Some longer papers may require the use of headings for Introduction and Conclusion, as well as for sections of the body, whereas shorter papers may not. (Do not use "Body" as a heading; use headings relevant to your own content). Check the specifications for every assignment you are set. Different subject and discipline areas may have different requirements.

The introduction should begin with the general issue and narrow down to the specifics of the problem you are discussing in your paper. Use the introduction to provide background information about the broad subject, identify the relevant problem or issue, and take the reader step by step to an understanding of why the specific focus you have chosen is relevant to that subject.

An introduction usually ends with some sort of statement of your focus (a focal statement or purpose statement). This statement tells the reader specifically what point you are going to make in your paper, and if possible how you are going to go about doing that. You may find it helpful to write the introduction last or at least revise it substantially after the main body of the paper has been written.

The body should follow logically from your focal statement and support it consistently. Use section headings where appropriate, if required. Keep referring back to the focal statement with each new piece of information you bring in, to ensure that it is relevant to the point you want to make in your paper.

The body is made up of a series of paragraphs. Paragraphs may be described as packages of information each beginning with a topic sentence. The topic sentence defines the content or topic of the paragraph, just as the focal statement for the paper defines the specific topic of the essay. The topic of the paragraph is then expanded with sentences which may develop the topic by providing examples, details, evidence or analogies.

Make sure the ideas flow clearly from one sentence to the next. Use illustrations, diagrams and tables where they clarify your text or are more efficient than text. A broader concluding sentence for the paragraph may sometimes be provided to tie the information together and remind the reader how it relates to the focus of the paper.

Information in the conclusion moves from the specific to the general. The conclusion must not simply repeat information given earlier, but must synthesize the ideas in the research paper to form a response to the issue raised by the paper topic:
Restate the focal statement of the research paper.

Summarize the main points of the supporting paragraphs as they are relevant to your synthesis. End with a broader concluding statement about how the assignment question relates to the more general issues described in the introduction.

The general rule is that no new information should be brought into the conclusion: everything in it should follow logically from the information presented to the reader in your research paper.

Your Research Paper must be submitted in two ways:

1) hard copy printed on white A4 format paper, Font 12, Times New Roman, spaces between lines – 2 mm;

2) e-mail with your name and your ID Number on the subject line.

Please include Title Page, with your name on it.  

Do not forget to include References, and Abstract.

Please email your paper (as attachment) to the following address: algirdas@gmail.com.

Please do not forget to write your full name and student ID number on the Subject Line. Please e-mail only once.

Your paper must be submitted in both ways mentioned above on or before 7 January, (before 5 pm), but not earlier than December 23, 2010.

You must print your title page according to the following SAMPLE (please note that this is only a sample)

TITLE PAGE of your Paper

(12 blank lines)

PROBLEMS OF TREATMENT HEPATITIS IN CHINA (10 blank lines)

Student: English name in English and Chinese names (first name and last name) in Chinese and in English

Student ID Number:

Instructor and Supervisor: Dr. Algirdas Makarevicius

(10 blank lines)

December 23, 2010

Textbooks

English Paper Writing and Publication.
English for International Academic Conferences.

Assessment

Research paper: 50%
Examination: 35%
Participation in class: 15%.


Course Outline